Members of the Board of Directors of the National Communications Authority (NCA) have reportedly refused to accept the $89 million controversial contract with Kelni GVG.

JoyNews is learning that a member on the board, Susan-Barbera Adjorkor Boye Kumapley, has tendered in her resignation letter. 

Adjorkor is a Partner and the Head of the Technology, Media and Telecommunications Practice Group of law firm, Bentsi-Enchill Letsa & Ankomah (BELLA).

A source within the Board told JoyNews her resignation is linked to the contentious contract although that has not been stated in in her resignation letter. More Board members are prepared to walk away if such deals continue, sources close to the Board told Manasseh Azure Awuni.

The Board insists that the NCA, which is the implementing agency, has engineers and other technicians who are capable of doing what at the company has been contracted to do. The company would be operating from the premises of the NCA, according to JoyNews sources. The Board believes the NCA could as well get the equipment and do the work at a cheaper cost. 

Government through the Communications Ministry, in 2017 signed the contract with Haitian company, Kelni GVG, to deal with suspected revenue losses and simbox fraud in the telcos.

President of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe says the $89 million contract is a careless duplication of jobs and a needless drain on the country’s scarce resources.

According to him, Subah and Afriwave were awarded similar contracts under the NDC administration to perform similar jobs, even though both contracts were needless.

Read: IMANI fingers gov't in new $89m Subah-like deal

Franklin Cudjoe

Deputy Communications Minister, George Andah, on Monday stated on the Super Morning Show on Joy FM that, the contract is 55% cheaper than the previous two contracts and does two more functions than them too.

According to Mr. Andah, Kelni GVG apart from monitoring calls in real time, can also monitor the new space of mobile money transactions.

Read: Gov't chasing $1bn revenue with $89m contract but IMANI cries foul

George Andah

Meanwhile, JoyNews has gathered that members of the Board of Directors of NCA, maintain the contract is not in the interest of Ghanaians.

The Board members are said to be putting their concerns to the appropriate quarters in order to prevent it from happening. This is to avoid an open confrontation with the Communications Minister, Ursula Owusu Ekuful.

Background

In 2010 the Ghana Revenue Authority contracted Subah to oversee revenue assurance activities within the telcos.

The company received 75 million cedis for what critics say was payment for no work done.

Later on in 2015, Afriwave was appointed by the NCA to perform the job of an interconnect clearinghouse services which was similar to the job being done by Subah. They were also paid an amount of 40 million cedis.

In 2017, the NPP government is now contracting a new foreign company to do the same, if not similar job.